These little lanterns are about 2" tall and are made from a toilet paper tube. You can make two lanterns from each tube. They are adorable individually and hung as a group for a garland. You can also forgo the hanger and pop one over a light on your tree to see it really glow!*

The ornament for today is the loveable pom pom! Pom poms are really easy to make using nothing but your fingers - this is how I learned to make then when I was little. They are perfect to brighten up trees and packages too so have fun and make a bunch!

Supplies:yarnscissors*stiff cardboard (optional)

Directions:I'm sending you to my other blog, Bella Dia, to follow the tutorial I did four years ago to make pom poms using only your fingers.

Read these tips first:

The pom pom in the tutorial is made wrapping the yarn around two fingers, for this pom pom ornament, wrap the yarn 100 times around four fingers.

*If your child has trouble wrapping the yarn around his/her fingers then substitute some stiff cardboard or even a mini notebook, then slide the wrapped yarn from the cardboard to continue.

To make a two-colored pom pom, wrap the yarn using two strands (one from each color) at a time. Then instead of wrapping 100 times you would do it 50 times.

The pom pom just needs to be trimmed to create a round shape. You don't need to cut it really short unless you want to :)

Make sure that the yarn strand to tie up your yarn bundle is pulled very tightly and knotted so it will hold together well.

I am in love with these little Jingle Bell Flowers! They are darling for ornaments but they'd make a wonderful garland as well. Put one on your wrist to add a little jingle to your step or tie one on a package to make it extra special. I hope you like them too!Supplies:cardboard egg carton red, green, lime green, and brown acrylic paintone jingle bell for each flower~10" piece of green yarnscissorspaint brushdish of waterneedle with large eye

Directions:first you need to cut apart your egg carton as shown above:→ cut the lid from the egg cups→ cut down the middle of the egg cups→ cut the closing flap off and the flat parts between the bumps (see above)→ cut the 10 creased triangles from between the egg cups→ cut apart the egg cups

→ trim the egg cups so they are even all the way around → trim the triangles to look like leaves, use the pattern above but there is no reason to be very precise → cut more leaves using the flat pieces from the closing flap; if you need more cut them from the egg carton cover

→ water down the paint a bit and apply with a soft brush, it makes it easier to cover the rough surface→ paint the egg cups red→ paint the leaves a mixture of brown, green and limegreen (I put all three colors in a dish and let them gradually mix into each other as I paint for a nice variety of color)

→ for each flower you need one egg cup, one bell, and between 3 and 6 leaves - flat and creased→ for younger kids you can use a plastic needle but you'll need to poke holes through the leaves → poke a hole through the bottom of the egg cup→ thread your needle with the yarn, do not make a knot

→ string as above: 3 leaves, up through the bottom of the egg cup and the jingle bell

→ run the thread back through the egg cup and through the last three leaves

→ tie the ends of the yarn and trim the extraNow you have a beautiful Jingle Bell Flower!

I am happy to share with you this tutorial by guest blogger, Scott, author of the blog, What I Made! He's a super-creative father of two boys and I thought he might be just the person to come up with a great handmade gift for boys. Of course, I'm sure there are a lot of girls that would enjoy this too because girls like their secret hiding spots as much as boys, but if you're looking for a good boy project then this may be it!

'Home alone' Snail Soup Decoy

This Christmas gift project is inspired by the 'Home Alone' movies, and my son, who is obsessed with burglars. I don't know why he is so security conscious, but even the idea that Father Christmas could get into the house via a chimney freaked him out when he was younger!

Anyway, this is for him, and any other kid who wants to keep his or her valuables (pocket money, trading cards, Pokemon etc.) safe from burglars, or nosy siblings. Disguised as a yukky tin of snail soup, this decoy conceals a secret safe, with an impenetrable 'steel' (well, cardboard) door.

It's fairly easy to make, I have provided illustrated instructions and printable downloads for the 'snail soup' and 'secret safe' labels. Good luck.

Directions:✴cut your fabric so it covers your hoop with about an extra inch all around

✴have your child draw a picture within that space with the crayons (the finer the weave of the fabric the easier it is to color on)

✴while the artwork is being created you can paint the embroidery hoop; you only need to paint the outside ring since the other ring will be completely covered

✴when the artwork is completed place a piece of plain white paper over it and press with a hot iron until wax is melted into the fabric; you won't be able to tell much but it should feel smooth and some of the wax may be absorbed into the paper

✴put the finished artwork into the hoop and tighten

✴trim the extra fabric so it will just wrap around to the inside, about ¼"

✴run a line of glue along the edge of the inside hoop and press the fabric towards the center

✴you can write your child's name and date on the inside hoop; add ribbon to hang

Making these little woven cookie stars are so much fun and something that all ages can enjoy at their own level. Of course, I love them as ornaments but wouldn't they be cute decorating a package too?! I'm going to make some with white crochet thread for a more sophisticated snowflake look. You can even put a bunch together for a fantastic garland!

A few tips:Crochet thread is inexpensive and can be found in the yarn section of a craft store, but, before youbuy any be sure to check your local thrift shop! I always find crochet thread at the thrift shop and many times it is completely brand new so you'll be able to get a nice variety of colors for very little money.

For the circle I traced around a jar lid.

Cutting corrugated cardboard is hard on your hands, if you have some heavy duty scissors, like kitchen shears, I suggest using those.

Make shallow cuts (~¼") around the edge of the circle. Start with two cuts opposite each other (1) then make the next two cuts half-way between the first two cuts (2) and continue until you have 16 cuts. Or, you can completely ignore this and cut as many or as few slots as you like too!

You can cut the thread or work straight from the ball. If you cut off a section you'll need about 3 yards to wrap around the cookie three times.

Start the thread in a slot; a knot isn't necessary, the end of the floss will be buried securely under the wrapping.

Start wrapping the thread around the cookie. For a star, continue wrapping the thread in opposite slots.

For rounds 2 and 3, start thread in the same slot but wrap the opposite thread in one slot closer to the starting slot. Experiment a bit here and you'll see how easy it is :)

When you're done, cut the thread leaving about a 6" tail. Thread your needle and slide the end under the weaving and snip. Feel free to add a drop of glue if you feel it needs to be secured.

Take advantage of the corrugated cardboard when making your hanging loop. Using about 8" of thread, thread your needle and run it through one of the channels and back up again in the channel next to the first. That sounds easy ;) but you'll probably need something like a bamboo skewer to push the needle through the channels.

All finished and ready to hang or decorate a package!

I had to include this pretty pair... the weaving on the right has 19 slots and uses a variegated pink crochet thread.

There's no reason for store-bought gift wrap when you have artists at home that will work for the joy of creating :) Reuse as much paper as you can - newspaper, packaging paper, grocery bags, copy paper - and get out the paint, markers, stamps, stickers, and crayons for some wrapping paper fun!

Several years ago we went paper-free and now all of our gifts are tucked into reuseable fabric bags which I love! I'll come back here and add some links for simple bags to make - this is a great beginning sewing project too :)